Karl Gerstenberger knows a thing or two about sausage (and history). He is currently head chef and wurstmacher at St. Paul’s historic Waldmann Brewery and Wurstery. At Camp, look for Chef Karl to bring together classic cuisine, camp cooking, and whole-animal butchery. And if we're lucky, maybe he'll reveal the secret of how to make the best wurst.

Bring a large pot of water with all the ingredients (except the octopus) to a boil.

At a rolling boil, hold the octopus with tongs and dunk the whole thing, completely submerging it for 10 seconds. Repeat this three times, the shock of the boiling liquid tenderizes the octopus. After the third dunk, leave it in the pot to cook at a simmer medium simmer for 45 minutes for a three-pound octopus and an hour for a five-pound octopus. After that, remove it from the pot, let it cool, and cut to make each tentacle a portion. (You can discard the head or use it).

Once cooled, toss the octopus tentacles in olive oil, light salt and pepper. Grill the octopus tentacles on one side until crispy, flip and repeat on the other side.

Cut the lemons in half and place cut side down on the grill until there’s a nice char marking on the surface of the lemon, three to four minutes. Flip and grill for three to four minutes more. Remove from the grill and cool completely.

Using a hand-held juicer, juice the lemons into a glass measuring cup, they should yield about 1/3 cup. Pour the lemon juice into a deep quart container jar and add the coriander, parsley, chiles, honey and 1 teaspoon of salt. Blend with a hand blender, by adding the olive oil in a thin stream until the mixture is smooth.

Between chef-led cooking classes and summer camp fun, our campers share meals in our outdoor dining pavilion. This year, we’re more than thrilled to have Nettie Colón as our resident Camp Cook—her creativity, farm-to-table focus, and willingness to dig a fire pit just about anywhere are guaranteed to make for epic meals at camp.

She’ll be combining many different styles of underground cooking—from the Andean “Pachamanca” to the Sardinian “Carraxu.” She will incorporate ingredients and flavors that she has picked up from her many travels. Campers, bring your appetites.